Renal transplantation - clinical studies - 1

Experimental pathology - 2

Cell signalling and cell growth control - 2

Lab methods, progression & risk factors for CKD - 1

Experimental pathology - 1

Mutations in the RARE and MARE regulatory sequences of HNF1 are not a frequent cause of kidney/urinary tract malformation

Polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, skin changes (POEMS) syndrome refractory to complete serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) blockade: insights from sequential VEGF monitoring

Polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, skin changes (POEMS) syndrome is a systemic condition related to plasma cell dyscrasia. Increased vascular permeability is responsible for some of the hallmarks of this disorder that may include renal microangiopathy. Several lines of evidence suggest that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is central to the pathogenesis of POEMS syndrome. Thus, specifically targeting VEGF over-expression seems to be a promising treatment. Anti-VEGF therapies are yielding conflicting results. We report on a patient with POEMS syndrome treated with bevacizumab, an anti-VEGF monoclonal antibody. Sequential monitoring of serum VEGF showed sustained normalization of serum VEGF levels, without any beneficial effect on the patient's condition. Indications of this treatment should be chosen carefully.

Melting History and Magmatic Evolution of Basalts and Picrites from the Accreted Wrangellia Oceanic Plateau, Vancouver Island, Canada

The accreted Wrangellia oceanic plateau in the Pacific Northwest of North America provides important insights into the volcanic architecture of major oceanic plateaus, as well as the nature of their mantle source, conditions of melting and subsequent magmatic evolution. The ∼20 000 km 2 Karmutsen Formation flood basalts (Vancouver Island) were emplaced at c. 225–230 Ma onto Middle Triassic marine sediments and Late Devonian to Early Permian island-arc volcanic and sedimentary sequences, and are overlain by Late Triassic platformal carbonates. The basalts form an emergent sequence consisting of a basal sediment–sill complex (600–900 m thick), pillowed and massive submarine flows (>2·5 km), pillow breccia and hyaloclastite (<1·5 km), and massive subaerial flows (<2·5 km). Although the Karmutsen Formation is predominantly composed of tholeiitic basalt, the submarine part of the stratigraphy on northern Vancouver Island also contains picritic basalts. These high-MgO (9–20 wt %) lavas are depleted in light rare earth elements (LREE; La/Yb CN = 0·5 ± 0·2), whereas the tholeiitic lavas (6–8 wt % MgO) are LREE-enriched (La/Yb CN = 2·2 ± 0·3). Both lava groups have overlapping initial ε Hf (+10·3 ± 2·1) and ε Nd (+7·7 ± 1·3), indicating a common, plume-type Pacific mantle source with geochemical characteristics similar to the source of basalts from the Ontong Java and Caribbean plateaus. Major-element modeling results indicate that the picrites formed by extensive melting (23–27%) of anomalously hot mantle (∼1500°C), which is consistent with a mantle plume initiation model for formation of the Karmutsen flood basalts on Vancouver Island. Trace element constraints indicate that the picrites require melting of a depleted spinel lherzolite source, whereas the tholeiitic basalts involved melting of garnet and spinel lherzolite. The tholeiitic basalts underwent significant fractional crystallization (>50%) and the fractionated residues may be represented by high-velocity rocks beneath Vancouver Island identified from seismic reflection studies.

Effects of intra- and inter-annual variability in prey field on the feeding selectivity of larval Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus)

DOUBLOONS AND NEW Q -TANGENT NUMBERS

We introduce new q -tangent numbers based on the Carlitz q -analog of the Eulerian polynomial and the so-called doubloon combinatorial set-up. Those new q -tangent numbers are polynomials with positive integral coefficients. They are divisible by products of binomials of the form 1 + q i , the quotients being q -analogs of the reduced tangent numbers having an explicit combinatorial interpretation.